Apparatus and method for facilitating trickplay playback

ABSTRACT

Aspects of the subject disclosure may include, for example, receiving a first manifest file from a first server that includes first metadata that identifies a second server where a first portion of data associated with a content item is stored, responsive to the receiving of the first manifest file, determining that a trickplay command is received by a processing system, responsive to the determining that the trickplay command is received, generating or modifying a second manifest file to incorporate the first metadata, and obtaining the first portion of the data associated with the content item from the second server in accordance with the second manifest file. Other embodiments are disclosed.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The subject disclosure relates to apparatuses and methods forfacilitating trickplay playback of content, such as for example aplayback of content by resource-constrained devices.

BACKGROUND

Users of devices, such as set-top boxes (STBs), have become accustomedto the ability to engage in a trickplay playback of content items. Forexample, VCR-style commands allow a user to rewind, pause, resume, orfast-forward content during playback. Traditionally, STBs were of arelatively large physical form-factor/profile and accommodated storage(e.g., memory) capacities that enable large amounts of data or metadatato be stored therein. As a result of such large storage capacities,traditional STBs can accommodate trickplay capabilities over theentirety of a typical content item. However, as the form-factor/profileof devices (e.g., STBs, mobile devices, etc.) continues toshrink/decrease, all other conditions being equal the amount of storagecapacity that is available for accommodating trickplay playback of acontent item decreases.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are notnecessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary, non-limitingembodiment of a communications network in accordance with variousaspects described herein.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating an example, non-limitingembodiment of a system functioning within the communication network ofFIG. 1 in accordance with various aspects described herein.

FIG. 2B depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method in accordancewith various aspects described herein.

FIG. 2C depicts an illustrative embodiment of a timeline denotescommands to initiate trickplay actions in accordance with variousaspects described herein.

FIG. 2D depicts an illustrative embodiment of a method in accordancewith various aspects described herein.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example, non-limitingembodiment of a virtualized communication network in accordance withvarious aspects described herein.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an example, non-limiting embodiment of acomputing environment in accordance with various aspects describedherein.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an example, non-limiting embodiment of amobile network platform in accordance with various aspects describedherein.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an example, non-limiting embodiment of acommunication device in accordance with various aspects describedherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The subject disclosure describes, among other things, illustrativeembodiments for generating and maintaining a manifest/manifest file byone or more communication devices. The manifest/manifest file may beused to obtain portions of content items that may be presented by acommunication device. Other embodiments are described in the subjectdisclosure.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include receiving a firstindication of a plurality of content items that are available via anetwork, responsive to the receiving of the first indication,transmitting a second indication of a selection of a content itemincluded in the plurality of content items, responsive to thetransmitting of the second indication, receiving a first manifest filethat identifies a location on the network where at least a first portionof data associated with the content item may be obtained, responsive tothe receiving of the first manifest file, declaring one of the firstmanifest file or a second manifest file as a selected manifest file, andobtaining the at least a first portion of data from the location on thenetwork in accordance with the selected manifest file.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include receiving a firstmanifest file from a first server that includes first metadata thatidentifies a second server where a first portion of data associated witha content item is stored, responsive to the receiving of the firstmanifest file, determining that a trickplay command is received by aprocessing system, responsive to the determining that the trickplaycommand is received, generating or modifying a second manifest file toincorporate the first metadata, and obtaining the first portion of thedata associated with the content item from the second server inaccordance with the second manifest file.

One or more aspects of the subject disclosure include receiving a firstmanifest file from a server, wherein the first manifest file comprisesfirst metadata for obtaining first data associated with a first portionof a first content item, receiving a trickplay command with respect to aplayback of the first portion of the first content item, receiving asecond manifest file from the server subsequent to the receiving of thefirst manifest file, wherein the second manifest file comprises secondmetadata for obtaining second data associated with a second portion ofthe first content item, third data associated with a third portion of asecond content item, or a combination thereof, and responsive to thereceiving of the trickplay command and the receiving of the secondmanifest file, appending the second metadata to a third manifest file.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a block diagram is shown illustrating anexample, non-limiting embodiment of a communications network 100 inaccordance with various aspects described herein. For example,communications network 100 can facilitate in whole or in part receivinga first indication of a plurality of content items that are availablevia a network, responsive to the receiving of the first indication,transmitting a second indication of a selection of a content itemincluded in the plurality of content items, responsive to thetransmitting of the second indication, receiving a first manifest filethat identifies a location on the network where at least a first portionof data associated with the content item may be obtained, responsive tothe receiving of the first manifest file, declaring one of the firstmanifest file or a second manifest file as a selected manifest file, andobtaining the at least a first portion of data from the location on thenetwork in accordance with the selected manifest file. Communicationsnetwork 100 can facilitate in whole or in part receiving a firstmanifest file from a first server that includes first metadata thatidentifies a second server where a first portion of data associated witha content item is stored, responsive to the receiving of the firstmanifest file, determining that a trickplay command is received by aprocessing system, responsive to the determining that the trickplaycommand is received, generating or modifying a second manifest file toincorporate the first metadata, and obtaining the first portion of thedata associated with the content item from the second server inaccordance with the second manifest file. Communications network 100 canfacilitate in whole or in part receiving a first manifest file from aserver, wherein the first manifest file comprises first metadata forobtaining first data associated with a first portion of a first contentitem, receiving a trickplay command with respect to a playback of thefirst portion of the first content item, receiving a second manifestfile from the server subsequent to the receiving of the first manifestfile, wherein the second manifest file comprises second metadata forobtaining second data associated with a second portion of the firstcontent item, third data associated with a third portion of a secondcontent item, or a combination thereof, and responsive to the receivingof the trickplay command and the receiving of the second manifest file,appending the second metadata to a third manifest file.

As shown in FIG. 1, the communications network 100 is presented forproviding broadband access 110 to a plurality of data terminals 114 viaaccess terminal 112, wireless access 120 to a plurality of mobiledevices 124 and vehicle 126 via base station or access point 122, voiceaccess 130 to a plurality of telephony devices 134, via switching device132 and/or media access 140 to a plurality of audio/video displaydevices 144 via media terminal 142. In addition, communication network100 is coupled to one or more content sources 175 of audio, video,graphics, text and/or other media. While broadband access 110, wirelessaccess 120, voice access 130 and media access 140 are shown separately,one or more of these forms of access can be combined to provide multipleaccess services to a single client device (e.g., mobile devices 124 canreceive media content via media terminal 142, data terminal 114 can beprovided voice access via switching device 132, and so on).

The communications network 100 includes a plurality of network elements(NE) 150, 152, 154, 156, etc. for facilitating the broadband access 110,wireless access 120, voice access 130, media access 140 and/or thedistribution of content from content sources 175. The communicationsnetwork 100 can include a circuit switched or packet switched network, avoice over Internet protocol (VoIP) network, Internet protocol (IP)network, a cable network, a passive or active optical network, a 4G, 5G,or higher generation wireless access network, WIMAX network,UltraWideband network, personal area network or other wireless accessnetwork, a broadcast satellite network and/or other communicationsnetwork.

In various embodiments, the access terminal 112 can include a digitalsubscriber line access multiplexer (DSLAM), cable modem terminationsystem (CMTS), optical line terminal (OLT) and/or other access terminal.The data terminals 114 can include personal computers, laptop computers,netbook computers, tablets or other computing devices along with digitalsubscriber line (DSL) modems, data over coax service interfacespecification (DOCSIS) modems or other cable modems, a wireless modemsuch as a 4G, 5G, or higher generation modem, an optical modem and/orother access devices.

In various embodiments, the base station or access point 122 can includea 4G, 5G, or higher generation base station, an access point thatoperates via an 802.11 standard such as 802.11n, 802.11ac or otherwireless access terminal. The mobile devices 124 can include mobilephones, e-readers, tablets, phablets, wireless modems, and/or othermobile computing devices.

In various embodiments, the switching device 132 can include a privatebranch exchange or central office switch, a media services gateway, VoIPgateway or other gateway device and/or other switching device. Thetelephony devices 134 can include traditional telephones (with orwithout a terminal adapter), VoIP telephones and/or other telephonydevices.

In various embodiments, the media terminal 142 can include a cablehead-end or other TV head-end, a satellite receiver, gateway or othermedia terminal 142. The display devices 144 can include televisions withor without a set top box, personal computers and/or other displaydevices.

In various embodiments, the content sources 175 include broadcasttelevision and radio sources, video on demand platforms and streamingvideo and audio services platforms, one or more content data networks,data servers, web servers and other content servers, and/or othersources of media. As used herein, a content item may illustrativelyrefer to, without limitation, a video, an image, an audio track, adocument, a message, an application or program, etc., or any combinationthereof.

In various embodiments, the communications network 100 can includewired, optical and/or wireless links and the network elements 150, 152,154, 156, etc. can include service switching points, signal transferpoints, service control points, network gateways, media distributionhubs, servers, firewalls, routers, edge devices, switches and othernetwork nodes for routing and controlling communications traffic overwired, optical and wireless links as part of the Internet and otherpublic networks as well as one or more private networks, for managingsubscriber access, for billing and network management and for supportingother network functions.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating an example, non-limitingembodiment of a system 200 a functioning within, or overlaid upon, thecommunication network of FIG. 1 in accordance with various aspectsdescribed herein. The system 200 a may include one or more communicationdevices, such as for example a first user equipment (UE) 202 a, a firstserver 206 a, a second server 210 a, a third server 214 a, a second UE218 a, etc. While the servers 206 a, 210 a, and 214 a are shown anddescribed separately, in some embodiments two or more of the servers maycorrespond to a same/common server. In some embodiments, a given server(e.g., the first server 206 a) may correspond to a management or controlserver, and one or more of the other servers (e.g., the second server210 a and/or the third server 214 a) may correspond to content deliveryserver(s).

The system 200 a may be used to select and distribute one or morecontent items, potentially in conjunction with one or more networks. Insome embodiments, the system 200 a may facilitate trickplay playback on,e.g., the UE 202 a with respect to the one or more content items. Theabove-noted features are described in more detail below in connectionwith FIG. 2B. More generally, FIG. 2B depicts an illustrative embodimentof a method 200 b in accordance with various aspects described herein.

In block 204 b, the UE 202 a may receive (and the first server 206 a maytransmit) an indication of one or more content items that are availableto the UE 202 a. The content item(s) may be available to the UE 202 a onthe basis of a license or subscription. The UE 202 a may receive theindication in response to a request transmitted by the UE. For example,the request may be generated by the UE 202 a (or another device) inresponse to a user input.

In some embodiments, the indication obtained by the UE 202 a in block204 b may take one or more forms. For example, the indication mayfacilitate a presentation of the indication by the UE 202 a as, e.g., anaudio rendering, an electronic programming guide (EPG), an interactiveprogramming guide (IPG), a menu, etc., or any combination thereof.

In block 208 b, the UE 202 a may transmit (an indication of) a selectionof a content item. The first server 206 a may receive the (indication ofthe) selection as part of block 208 b.

In block 212 b, the UE 202 a may receive a first manifest file based onthe selection of block 208 b. The first server 206 a may transmit thefirst manifest file to the UE 202 a as part of block 212 b.

The first manifest file may be pertinent to the content item that isselected as part of block 208 b. For example, the first manifest filemay include data/metadata that identifies when the selected content itemis available, a location where portions of the selected content item maybe obtained/retrieved, etc.

In some embodiments, the location where the selected content item may beobtained/retrieved may be identified in accordance with an address(e.g., a network address). The address may uniquely identify a firstdevice that hosts/stores one or more portions of the selected contentitem from other devices. Continuing the above example, and assuming thatthe selected content item is stored at/by the second server 210 a (andnot the third server 214 a), the data/metadata of the first manifestfile may identify or include the address of the second server 210 a. Itshould be noted, however, that in some embodiments, multiple servers maystore respective portions of a content item. Still further, at leastsome of the portions of a content item may be replicated across multipleservers in order to promote reliability (e.g., in order to safeguardagainst a given server being inoperable or offline).

In some embodiments, the first manifest file may refer to a portion(e.g., a segment or chunk) of the selected content item that is lessthan the whole of the selected content item. For example, the firstmanifest file may contain up to a threshold amount (e.g., 6 seconds) ofmetadata associated with a playback of the content item. The thresholdamount of metadata may be selected to enable the UE 202 a to pre-fetch asufficient amount of data associated with the selected content item inblock 250 b (described below), while reducing (e.g., minimizing)buffering-related delays during the playback. The threshold may bepredetermined and/or may be adapted in response to changing/dynamicconditions (e.g., network loads, quality of service (QoS) parameters,types of communication sessions that the UE 202 a is engaged in, etc.).

In block 250 b, the UE 202 a may obtain the data associated with theportion of the selected content item. For example, the UE 202 a mayobtain the data associated with the portion of the selected content itemin accordance with the terms/conditions imposed by the first manifestfile received in block 212 b. Continuing the above example, as part ofblock 250 b the UE 202 a may transmit a request to the second server 210a for data associated with a portion of the selected content item, andthe second server 210 a may transmit the data associated with theportion of the selected content item to the UE 202 a in response toreceiving that request.

In block 254 b, the UE 202 a may playback the portion of the selectedcontent item based on the data obtained as part of block 250 b. Whilenot shown in FIG. 2B, from block 254 b flow may proceed to, e.g., block212 b. Thus, a loop may be established whereby the UE 202 a continues toreceive an updated version of the first manifest file from, e.g., thefirst server 206 a, in order to facilitate receipt of metadata by the UE202 a that, when taken/viewed in the aggregate, describes/refers tomultiple portions (e.g., the entirety) of the selected content item.

Assuming that the playback of the selected content item as part of block254 b is a linear playback (such as for example playback associated witha broadcast or multicast distribution model) then every UE that is partof the system 200 a may receive substantially the same (first) manifestfile from, e.g., the first server 206 a in conjunction with thatselected content item and may playback the selected content item in themanner set forth above (e.g., there may be a direct flow from block 212b to block 250 b as shown via the dashed arrow in FIG. 2B that connectsthose blocks). Moreover, the loop described above (in respect of theflow from block 254 b to block 212 b) may facilitate a rolling window interms of a respective portion of the selected content item, which is tosay that as a first portion of the playback is completed that firstportion (in terms of the metadata associated with the manifest fileand/or in terms of the data of the selected content item itself) may bediscarded of or overwritten by subsequently received data or metadata.In this manner, the size and content of the first manifest file asutilized by the UEs may the same/common across all the UEs.

However, if trickplay capability is to be supported/facilitated, then asshown on the timeline 200 c of FIG. 2C, the UE 202 a may initiate afirst trickplay action (e.g., may initiate a pause) at a first point 202c in the playback of the selected content item, and another UE (e.g.,the UE 218 a in FIG. 2A) may initiate a second trickplay action (e.g.,may initiate a rewind, pause, resume, or fast-forward) at a second point218 c in the playback of the selected content item. While the secondpoint 218 c is shown in FIG. 2C as a different time point relative tothe first point 202 c, the second point 218 c may be the same as thefirst point 202 c in some instances. Furthermore, the second trickplayaction may be the same as, or different from, the first trickplayaction.

Unless every UE in a system initiated the same trickplay action at thesame point in time of the playback of a content item (which rarely, ifever, would be the case in practical embodiments where there may behundreds or thousands of UEs), then the first manifest file transmittedfrom, e.g., the first server 206 a to the UEs (as part of block 212 b)may need to effectively be adapted/modified in accordance with thespecific circumstances/conditions associated with the playback by arespective UE. Referring back to FIG. 2B, such anadaptation/modification of the first manifest file is described infurther detail below in respect of the UE 202 a of FIG. 2A. One skilledin the art will appreciate that other UEs (e.g., the UE 218 a of FIG.2A) may perform a similar/analogous adaptation/modification.

In block 216 b, the UE 202 a may obtain (e.g., receive) a command toinitiate a trickplay action (e.g., a rewind, a pause, a resume, or afast-forward). The trickplay command may be based on a user inputobtained by the UE 202 a. As shown in FIG. 2B, block 216 b is denotedwith a dashed outline which represents that a trickplay command mightnot be obtained in some instances. For reasons that will become clearerbelow, in some instances a generation of a second manifest file (asdescribed below in conjunction with block 220 b, as well as inconjunction with FIG. 2D) may be conditioned on obtaining a trickplaycommand in the first instance.

In block 220 b, the UE 202 a may generate and/or modify a secondmanifest file that is based on the first manifest file received in block212 b. For example, the second manifest file may incorporate at leastsome of the metadata of the first manifest file that is received inblock 212 b.

Assuming that upon entry into block 220 b that the second manifest filealready exists, the UE 202 a may, or might not, overwrite some or all ofthe metadata that may have been previously present in the secondmanifest file with the metadata included in the first manifest file (ofblock 212 b). To demonstrate, if upon entry into block 220 b the (userof the) UE 202 a had initiated a trickplay action (e.g., a pause in theplayback of the selected content item) as shown in block 216 b and asrepresented at point 202 c in FIG. 2C, then it might not be desirable tooverwrite the metadata associated with a portion of the selected contentitem that is proximate to the point 202 c. For example, it may bedesirable (e.g., necessary) to maintain such metadata in the secondmanifest file in order to facilitate a resumption of the playbackstarting with the point in time that is just after when the playback waspaused, such that there is continuity in the presentation of theselected content item on/by the UE 202 a. In this respect, as part ofblock 220 b the UE 202 a may supplement existing metadata in the secondmanifest file by adding/appending the metadata included in the firstmanifest file to the second manifest file (withoutdeleting/discarding/overwriting the existing metadata).

In some instances, upon entry into block 220 b it may be desirable oreven necessary to delete/remove and/or ignore at least some of themetadata that may be exchanged (e.g., transmitted or received) as partof the system 200 a. For example, if due to a constraint (e.g., aphysical constraint, such as a small form-factor) the UE 202 a hasinsufficient storage (e.g., memory) capacity to add/append the metadataof the first manifest file (received in block 212 b) to the secondmanifest file as described above, at least some of the pre-existingmetadata that may be present in the second manifest file may bedeleted/discarded/overwritten to create room for the incoming metadataof the first manifest file.

The selection of metadata to delete/remove or ignore may be based on oneor more rules. For example, a first rule may provide for anelimination/deletion of the oldest metadata first (e.g. as part of afirst-in-first-out [FIFO] approach). A second rule may be to examineother metadata that indicates portions of the selected content item thatare deemed to be important or given a high priority relative to otherportions; metadata associated with lesser/lowest priority portions maybe deleted/removed first to make/preserve capacity for higher priorityportions. As an example of this second rule, if the selected contentitem is a movie pertaining to a solving of a murder mystery, metadataassociated with a portion of the movie that reveals the identity of themurderer may be retained in favor of metadata associated with a portionof the movie that deals with the murderer's upbringing in rural Montana.Other rules may be established and utilized for selecting metadata tomaintain/preserve or selecting metadata to delete/remove/overwrite.

The second manifest file may be stored by the UE 202 a. In someembodiments, the second manifest file may be stored at/by another devicethat may be accessed by the UE 202 a.

In terms of the obtaining of the portion of the selected content item inblock 250 b, the portion that is obtained may be based on, or performedin accordance with, terms/conditions imposed in the second manifest fileof block 220 b.

As described above, in some embodiments the generation of a secondmanifest file may be conditioned on receiving a trickplay command/inputin the first instance. For example, if the creation/generation of thesecond manifest file represents appreciable/substantial overhead, it maybe desirable to only create the second manifest file if it is needed,such as for example in relation to trickplay playback/actions. FIG. 2Dillustrates a method 200 d whereby the generation of the second manifestfile is conditioned on an initiation of a trickplay command.

The method 200 d is similar to the method 200 b of FIG. 2B, wheresimilarly numbered ‘d’ blocks, e.g., blocks 204 d, 208 d, 212 d, and 254d, are counterparts to ‘b’ blocks 204 b, 208 b, 212 b, and 254 b,respectively. Accordingly, a complete re-description of theaforementioned ‘d’ blocks is omitted herein for the sake of brevity.

In block 218 d, the UE 202 a may make determination as to whether atrickplay command has been obtained (e.g., received). If so (e.g., the“yes” path is taken from block 218 d), flow may proceed from block 218 dto block 222 d. Otherwise (e.g., the “no” path is taken from block 218d), flow may proceed from block 218 d to block 226 d.

In block 222 d, a second manifest file may be generated and/or modified.The operations of block 222 d may incorporate some or all of the aspectsof block 220 b described above. From block 222 d, flow may proceed toblock 230 d.

In block 226 d, the first manifest file (of block 212 d) may betreated/declared as a selected manifest file.

In block 230 d, the second manifest file (of block 222 d) may betreated/declared as a selected manifest file.

In block 234 d, a portion of the selected content item (of block 208 d)may be obtained per the terms/conditions of the selected manifest file(e.g., the selected manifest file of block 226 d or block 230 d). Theoperations of block 234 d may incorporate some or all of the aspects ofblock 250 b described above.

The playback of block 254 d may be based on the obtained portion ofblock 234 d.

While for purposes of simplicity of explanation, the respectiveprocesses are shown and described as a series of blocks in FIG. 2B andFIG. 2D, it is to be understood and appreciated that the claimed subjectmatter is not limited by the order of the blocks, as some blocks mayoccur in different orders and/or concurrently with other blocks fromwhat is depicted and described herein. Moreover, not all illustratedblocks may be required to implement the methods described herein. Whilethe methods 200 b and 200 d are illustrated separately for the sake ofconvenience, in some embodiments aspects of a first of the methods(e.g., the method 200 b) may be combined with aspects of one or moreother methods (e.g., the method 200 d).

Aspects of the disclosure may be used to promote efficiency in terms ofresource utilization. For example, aspects of the disclosure may enableone or more servers (or other network elements or devices) to simplydistribute a manifest file to facilitate a playback of a content itemwithout regard as to any playback options (e.g., trickplay actions) thatmay be initiated by a communications device (e.g., a UE) in respect ofsuch a playback. Responsibility for maintaining a manifest file tofacilitate trickplay playback/actions may be delegated/allocated to thecommunications device (or another device).

Aspects of the disclosure may be applied in connection with one or moredistribution models. For example, aspects of the disclosure may beapplied with respect to a broadcast distribution model, a multicastdistribution model (e.g., dissemination of pay-per-view or othersubscription-based assets), etc. Aspects of the disclosure may beapplied in conjunction with a streaming, over-the-top (OTT) distributionmodel, where content may be delivered to a communications device via anetwork (e.g., an Internet) connection.

Aspects of the disclosure may be used to facilitate various playbackoptions, including trickplay playback, on a resource-constrained device.For example, resource constraints may include limitations with respectto storage (e.g., memory) resources that are available, networkconnection constraints (e.g., limitations on bandwidth), powerlimitations (e.g., limited battery levels), etc. In some embodiments,the playback options may facilitate playback by the device withoutmaking sacrifices in terms of the quality or data-richness during apresentation of a content item. Still further, quality/data-richnesswith respect to a playback of a content item may be maintained whilealso accommodating other types of items (e.g., one or more operatingsystems, programs, applications, etc.) on/by the device.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a block diagram 300 is shown illustrating anexample, non-limiting embodiment of a virtualized communication networkin accordance with various aspects described herein. In particular avirtualized communication network is presented that can be used toimplement some or all of the subsystems and functions of communicationnetwork 100, the subsystems and functions of system 200 a, and methods200 b and 200 d presented in FIGS. 1, 2A, 2B, and 2D. For example,virtualized communication network 300 can facilitate in whole or in partreceiving a first indication of a plurality of content items that areavailable via a network, responsive to the receiving of the firstindication, transmitting a second indication of a selection of a contentitem included in the plurality of content items, responsive to thetransmitting of the second indication, receiving a first manifest filethat identifies a location on the network where at least a first portionof data associated with the content item may be obtained, responsive tothe receiving of the first manifest file, declaring one of the firstmanifest file or a second manifest file as a selected manifest file, andobtaining the at least a first portion of data from the location on thenetwork in accordance with the selected manifest file. Virtualizedcommunication network 300 can facilitate in whole or in part receiving afirst manifest file from a first server that includes first metadatathat identifies a second server where a first portion of data associatedwith a content item is stored, responsive to the receiving of the firstmanifest file, determining that a trickplay command is received by aprocessing system, responsive to the determining that the trickplaycommand is received, generating or modifying a second manifest file toincorporate the first metadata, and obtaining the first portion of thedata associated with the content item from the second server inaccordance with the second manifest file. Virtualized communicationnetwork 300 can facilitate in whole or in part receiving a firstmanifest file from a server, wherein the first manifest file comprisesfirst metadata for obtaining first data associated with a first portionof a first content item, receiving a trickplay command with respect to aplayback of the first portion of the first content item, receiving asecond manifest file from the server subsequent to the receiving of thefirst manifest file, wherein the second manifest file comprises secondmetadata for obtaining second data associated with a second portion ofthe first content item, third data associated with a third portion of asecond content item, or a combination thereof, and responsive to thereceiving of the trickplay command and the receiving of the secondmanifest file, appending the second metadata to a third manifest file.

In particular, a cloud networking architecture is shown that leveragescloud technologies and supports rapid innovation and scalability via atransport layer 350, a virtualized network function cloud 325 and/or oneor more cloud computing environments 375. In various embodiments, thiscloud networking architecture is an open architecture that leveragesapplication programming interfaces (APIs); reduces complexity fromservices and operations; supports more nimble business models; andrapidly and seamlessly scales to meet evolving customer requirementsincluding traffic growth, diversity of traffic types, and diversity ofperformance and reliability expectations.

In contrast to traditional network elements—which are typicallyintegrated to perform a single function, the virtualized communicationnetwork employs virtual network elements (VNEs) 330, 332, 334, etc. thatperform some or all of the functions of network elements 150, 152, 154,156, etc. For example, the network architecture can provide a substrateof networking capability, often called Network Function VirtualizationInfrastructure (NFVI) or simply infrastructure that is capable of beingdirected with software and Software Defined Networking (SDN) protocolsto perform a broad variety of network functions and services. Thisinfrastructure can include several types of substrates. The most typicaltype of substrate being servers that support Network FunctionVirtualization (NFV), followed by packet forwarding capabilities basedon generic computing resources, with specialized network technologiesbrought to bear when general purpose processors or general purposeintegrated circuit devices offered by merchants (referred to herein asmerchant silicon) are not appropriate. In this case, communicationservices can be implemented as cloud-centric workloads.

As an example, a traditional network element 150 (shown in FIG. 1), suchas an edge router can be implemented via a VNE 330 composed of NFVsoftware modules, merchant silicon, and associated controllers. Thesoftware can be written so that increasing workload consumes incrementalresources from a common resource pool, and moreover so that it'selastic: so the resources are only consumed when needed. In a similarfashion, other network elements such as other routers, switches, edgecaches, and middle-boxes are instantiated from the common resource pool.Such sharing of infrastructure across a broad set of uses makes planningand growing infrastructure easier to manage.

In an embodiment, the transport layer 350 includes fiber, cable, wiredand/or wireless transport elements, network elements and interfaces toprovide broadband access 110, wireless access 120, voice access 130,media access 140 and/or access to content sources 175 for distributionof content to any or all of the access technologies. In particular, insome cases a network element needs to be positioned at a specific place,and this allows for less sharing of common infrastructure. Other times,the network elements have specific physical layer adapters that cannotbe abstracted or virtualized, and might require special DSP code andanalog front-ends (AFEs) that do not lend themselves to implementationas VNEs 330, 332 or 334. These network elements can be included intransport layer 350.

The virtualized network function cloud 325 interfaces with the transportlayer 350 to provide the VNEs 330, 332, 334, etc. to provide specificNFVs. In particular, the virtualized network function cloud 325leverages cloud operations, applications, and architectures to supportnetworking workloads. The virtualized network elements 330, 332 and 334can employ network function software that provides either a one-for-onemapping of traditional network element function or alternately somecombination of network functions designed for cloud computing. Forexample, VNEs 330, 332 and 334 can include route reflectors, domain namesystem (DNS) servers, and dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP)servers, system architecture evolution (SAE) and/or mobility managemententity (MME) gateways, broadband network gateways, IP edge routers forIP-VPN, Ethernet and other services, load balancers, distributers andother network elements. Because these elements don't typically need toforward large amounts of traffic, their workload can be distributedacross a number of servers—each of which adds a portion of thecapability, and overall which creates an elastic function with higheravailability than its former monolithic version. These virtual networkelements 330, 332, 334, etc. can be instantiated and managed using anorchestration approach similar to those used in cloud compute services.

The cloud computing environments 375 can interface with the virtualizednetwork function cloud 325 via APIs that expose functional capabilitiesof the VNEs 330, 332, 334, etc. to provide the flexible and expandedcapabilities to the virtualized network function cloud 325. Inparticular, network workloads may have applications distributed acrossthe virtualized network function cloud 325 and cloud computingenvironment 375 and in the commercial cloud, or might simply orchestrateworkloads supported entirely in NFV infrastructure from these thirdparty locations.

Turning now to FIG. 4, there is illustrated a block diagram of acomputing environment in accordance with various aspects describedherein. In order to provide additional context for various embodimentsof the embodiments described herein, FIG. 4 and the following discussionare intended to provide a brief, general description of a suitablecomputing environment 400 in which the various embodiments of thesubject disclosure can be implemented. In particular, computingenvironment 400 can be used in the implementation of network elements150, 152, 154, 156, access terminal 112, base station or access point122, switching device 132, media terminal 142, and/or VNEs 330, 332,334, etc. Each of these devices can be implemented viacomputer-executable instructions that can run on one or more computers,and/or in combination with other program modules and/or as a combinationof hardware and software. For example, computing environment 400 canfacilitate in whole or in part receiving a first indication of aplurality of content items that are available via a network, responsiveto the receiving of the first indication, transmitting a secondindication of a selection of a content item included in the plurality ofcontent items, responsive to the transmitting of the second indication,receiving a first manifest file that identifies a location on thenetwork where at least a first portion of data associated with thecontent item may be obtained, responsive to the receiving of the firstmanifest file, declaring one of the first manifest file or a secondmanifest file as a selected manifest file, and obtaining the at least afirst portion of data from the location on the network in accordancewith the selected manifest file. Computing environment 400 canfacilitate in whole or in part receiving a first manifest file from afirst server that includes first metadata that identifies a secondserver where a first portion of data associated with a content item isstored, responsive to the receiving of the first manifest file,determining that a trickplay command is received by a processing system,responsive to the determining that the trickplay command is received,generating or modifying a second manifest file to incorporate the firstmetadata, and obtaining the first portion of the data associated withthe content item from the second server in accordance with the secondmanifest file. Computing environment 400 can facilitate in whole or inpart receiving a first manifest file from a server, wherein the firstmanifest file comprises first metadata for obtaining first dataassociated with a first portion of a first content item, receiving atrickplay command with respect to a playback of the first portion of thefirst content item, receiving a second manifest file from the serversubsequent to the receiving of the first manifest file, wherein thesecond manifest file comprises second metadata for obtaining second dataassociated with a second portion of the first content item, third dataassociated with a third portion of a second content item, or acombination thereof, and responsive to the receiving of the trickplaycommand and the receiving of the second manifest file, appending thesecond metadata to a third manifest file.

Generally, program modules comprise routines, programs, components, datastructures, etc., that perform particular tasks or implement particularabstract data types. Moreover, those skilled in the art will appreciatethat the inventive methods can be practiced with other computer systemconfigurations, comprising single-processor or multiprocessor computersystems, minicomputers, mainframe computers, as well as personalcomputers, hand-held computing devices, microprocessor-based orprogrammable consumer electronics, and the like, each of which can beoperatively coupled to one or more associated devices.

As used herein, a processing circuit includes one or more processors aswell as other application specific circuits such as an applicationspecific integrated circuit, digital logic circuit, state machine,programmable gate array or other circuit that processes input signals ordata and that produces output signals or data in response thereto. Itshould be noted that while any functions and features described hereinin association with the operation of a processor could likewise beperformed by a processing circuit.

The illustrated embodiments of the embodiments herein can be alsopracticed in distributed computing environments where certain tasks areperformed by remote processing devices that are linked through acommunications network. In a distributed computing environment, programmodules can be located in both local and remote memory storage devices.

Computing devices typically comprise a variety of media, which cancomprise computer-readable storage media and/or communications media,which two terms are used herein differently from one another as follows.Computer-readable storage media can be any available storage media thatcan be accessed by the computer and comprises both volatile andnonvolatile media, removable and non-removable media. By way of example,and not limitation, computer-readable storage media can be implementedin connection with any method or technology for storage of informationsuch as computer-readable instructions, program modules, structured dataor unstructured data.

Computer-readable storage media can comprise, but are not limited to,random access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), electricallyerasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or othermemory technology, compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM), digitalversatile disk (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassettes,magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devicesor other tangible and/or non-transitory media which can be used to storedesired information. In this regard, the terms “tangible” or“non-transitory” herein as applied to storage, memory orcomputer-readable media, are to be understood to exclude onlypropagating transitory signals per se as modifiers and do not relinquishrights to all standard storage, memory or computer-readable media thatare not only propagating transitory signals per se.

Computer-readable storage media can be accessed by one or more local orremote computing devices, e.g., via access requests, queries or otherdata retrieval protocols, for a variety of operations with respect tothe information stored by the medium.

Communications media typically embody computer-readable instructions,data structures, program modules or other structured or unstructureddata in a data signal such as a modulated data signal, e.g., a carrierwave or other transport mechanism, and comprises any informationdelivery or transport media. The term “modulated data signal” or signalsrefers to a signal that has one or more of its characteristics set orchanged in such a manner as to encode information in one or moresignals. By way of example, and not limitation, communication mediacomprise wired media, such as a wired network or direct-wiredconnection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF, infrared and otherwireless media.

With reference again to FIG. 4, the example environment can comprise acomputer 402, the computer 402 comprising a processing unit 404, asystem memory 406 and a system bus 408. The system bus 408 couplessystem components including, but not limited to, the system memory 406to the processing unit 404. The processing unit 404 can be any ofvarious commercially available processors. Dual microprocessors andother multiprocessor architectures can also be employed as theprocessing unit 404.

The system bus 408 can be any of several types of bus structure that canfurther interconnect to a memory bus (with or without a memorycontroller), a peripheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety ofcommercially available bus architectures. The system memory 406comprises ROM 410 and RAM 412. A basic input/output system (BIOS) can bestored in a non-volatile memory such as ROM, erasable programmable readonly memory (EPROM), EEPROM, which BIOS contains the basic routines thathelp to transfer information between elements within the computer 402,such as during startup. The RAM 412 can also comprise a high-speed RAMsuch as static RAM for caching data.

The computer 402 further comprises an internal hard disk drive (HDD) 414(e.g., EIDE, SATA), which internal HDD 414 can also be configured forexternal use in a suitable chassis (not shown), a magnetic floppy diskdrive (FDD) 416, (e.g., to read from or write to a removable diskette418) and an optical disk drive 420, (e.g., reading a CD-ROM disk 422 or,to read from or write to other high capacity optical media such as theDVD). The HDD 414, magnetic FDD 416 and optical disk drive 420 can beconnected to the system bus 408 by a hard disk drive interface 424, amagnetic disk drive interface 426 and an optical drive interface 428,respectively. The hard disk drive interface 424 for external driveimplementations comprises at least one or both of Universal Serial Bus(USB) and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 1394interface technologies. Other external drive connection technologies arewithin contemplation of the embodiments described herein.

The drives and their associated computer-readable storage media providenonvolatile storage of data, data structures, computer-executableinstructions, and so forth. For the computer 402, the drives and storagemedia accommodate the storage of any data in a suitable digital format.Although the description of computer-readable storage media above refersto a hard disk drive (HDD), a removable magnetic diskette, and aremovable optical media such as a CD or DVD, it should be appreciated bythose skilled in the art that other types of storage media which arereadable by a computer, such as zip drives, magnetic cassettes, flashmemory cards, cartridges, and the like, can also be used in the exampleoperating environment, and further, that any such storage media cancontain computer-executable instructions for performing the methodsdescribed herein.

A number of program modules can be stored in the drives and RAM 412,comprising an operating system 430, one or more application programs432, other program modules 434 and program data 436. All or portions ofthe operating system, applications, modules, and/or data can also becached in the RAM 412. The systems and methods described herein can beimplemented utilizing various commercially available operating systemsor combinations of operating systems.

A user can enter commands and information into the computer 402 throughone or more wired/wireless input devices, e.g., a keyboard 438 and apointing device, such as a mouse 440. Other input devices (not shown)can comprise a microphone, an infrared (IR) remote control, a joystick,a game pad, a stylus pen, touch screen or the like. These and otherinput devices are often connected to the processing unit 404 through aninput device interface 442 that can be coupled to the system bus 408,but can be connected by other interfaces, such as a parallel port, anIEEE 1394 serial port, a game port, a universal serial bus (USB) port,an IR interface, etc.

A monitor 444 or other type of display device can be also connected tothe system bus 408 via an interface, such as a video adapter 446. Itwill also be appreciated that in alternative embodiments, a monitor 444can also be any display device (e.g., another computer having a display,a smart phone, a tablet computer, etc.) for receiving displayinformation associated with computer 402 via any communication means,including via the Internet and cloud-based networks. In addition to themonitor 444, a computer typically comprises other peripheral outputdevices (not shown), such as speakers, printers, etc.

The computer 402 can operate in a networked environment using logicalconnections via wired and/or wireless communications to one or moreremote computers, such as a remote computer(s) 448. The remotecomputer(s) 448 can be a workstation, a server computer, a router, apersonal computer, portable computer, microprocessor-based entertainmentappliance, a peer device or other common network node, and typicallycomprises many or all of the elements described relative to the computer402, although, for purposes of brevity, only a remote memory/storagedevice 450 is illustrated. The logical connections depicted comprisewired/wireless connectivity to a local area network (LAN) 452 and/orlarger networks, e.g., a wide area network (WAN) 454. Such LAN and WANnetworking environments are commonplace in offices and companies, andfacilitate enterprise-wide computer networks, such as intranets, all ofwhich can connect to a global communications network, e.g., theInternet.

When used in a LAN networking environment, the computer 402 can beconnected to the LAN 452 through a wired and/or wireless communicationnetwork interface or adapter 456. The adapter 456 can facilitate wiredor wireless communication to the LAN 452, which can also comprise awireless AP disposed thereon for communicating with the adapter 456.

When used in a WAN networking environment, the computer 402 can comprisea modem 458 or can be connected to a communications server on the WAN454 or has other means for establishing communications over the WAN 454,such as by way of the Internet. The modem 458, which can be internal orexternal and a wired or wireless device, can be connected to the systembus 408 via the input device interface 442. In a networked environment,program modules depicted relative to the computer 402 or portionsthereof, can be stored in the remote memory/storage device 450. It willbe appreciated that the network connections shown are example and othermeans of establishing a communications link between the computers can beused.

The computer 402 can be operable to communicate with any wirelessdevices or entities operatively disposed in wireless communication,e.g., a printer, scanner, desktop and/or portable computer, portabledata assistant, communications satellite, any piece of equipment orlocation associated with a wirelessly detectable tag (e.g., a kiosk,news stand, restroom), and telephone. This can comprise WirelessFidelity (Wi-Fi) and BLUETOOTH® wireless technologies. Thus, thecommunication can be a predefined structure as with a conventionalnetwork or simply an ad hoc communication between at least two devices.

Wi-Fi can allow connection to the Internet from a couch at home, a bedin a hotel room or a conference room at work, without wires. Wi-Fi is awireless technology similar to that used in a cell phone that enablessuch devices, e.g., computers, to send and receive data indoors and out;anywhere within the range of a base station. Wi-Fi networks use radiotechnologies called IEEE 802.11 (a, b, g, n, ac, ag, etc.) to providesecure, reliable, fast wireless connectivity. A Wi-Fi network can beused to connect computers to each other, to the Internet, and to wirednetworks (which can use IEEE 802.3 or Ethernet). Wi-Fi networks operatein the unlicensed 2.4 and 5 GHz radio bands for example or with productsthat contain both bands (dual band), so the networks can providereal-world performance similar to the basic 10BaseT wired Ethernetnetworks used in many offices.

Turning now to FIG. 5, an embodiment 500 of a mobile network platform510 is shown that is an example of network elements 150, 152, 154, 156,and/or VNEs 330, 332, 334, etc. For example, platform 510 can facilitatein whole or in part receiving a first indication of a plurality ofcontent items that are available via a network, responsive to thereceiving of the first indication, transmitting a second indication of aselection of a content item included in the plurality of content items,responsive to the transmitting of the second indication, receiving afirst manifest file that identifies a location on the network where atleast a first portion of data associated with the content item may beobtained, responsive to the receiving of the first manifest file,declaring one of the first manifest file or a second manifest file as aselected manifest file, and obtaining the at least a first portion ofdata from the location on the network in accordance with the selectedmanifest file. Platform 510 can facilitate in whole or in part receivinga first manifest file from a first server that includes first metadatathat identifies a second server where a first portion of data associatedwith a content item is stored, responsive to the receiving of the firstmanifest file, determining that a trickplay command is received by aprocessing system, responsive to the determining that the trickplaycommand is received, generating or modifying a second manifest file toincorporate the first metadata, and obtaining the first portion of thedata associated with the content item from the second server inaccordance with the second manifest file. Platform 510 can facilitate inwhole or in part receiving a first manifest file from a server, whereinthe first manifest file comprises first metadata for obtaining firstdata associated with a first portion of a first content item, receivinga trickplay command with respect to a playback of the first portion ofthe first content item, receiving a second manifest file from the serversubsequent to the receiving of the first manifest file, wherein thesecond manifest file comprises second metadata for obtaining second dataassociated with a second portion of the first content item, third dataassociated with a third portion of a second content item, or acombination thereof, and responsive to the receiving of the trickplaycommand and the receiving of the second manifest file, appending thesecond metadata to a third manifest file.

In one or more embodiments, the mobile network platform 510 can generateand receive signals transmitted and received by base stations or accesspoints such as base station or access point 122. Generally, mobilenetwork platform 510 can comprise components, e.g., nodes, gateways,interfaces, servers, or disparate platforms, that facilitate bothpacket-switched (PS) (e.g., internet protocol (IP), frame relay,asynchronous transfer mode (ATM)) and circuit-switched (CS) traffic(e.g., voice and data), as well as control generation for networkedwireless telecommunication. As a non-limiting example, mobile networkplatform 510 can be included in telecommunications carrier networks, andcan be considered carrier-side components as discussed elsewhere herein.Mobile network platform 510 comprises CS gateway node(s) 512 which caninterface CS traffic received from legacy networks like telephonynetwork(s) 540 (e.g., public switched telephone network (PSTN), orpublic land mobile network (PLMN)) or a signaling system #7 (SS7)network 560. CS gateway node(s) 512 can authorize and authenticatetraffic (e.g., voice) arising from such networks. Additionally, CSgateway node(s) 512 can access mobility, or roaming, data generatedthrough SS7 network 560; for instance, mobility data stored in a visitedlocation register (VLR), which can reside in memory 530. Moreover, CSgateway node(s) 512 interfaces CS-based traffic and signaling and PSgateway node(s) 518. As an example, in a 3GPP UMTS network, CS gatewaynode(s) 512 can be realized at least in part in gateway GPRS supportnode(s) (GGSN). It should be appreciated that functionality and specificoperation of CS gateway node(s) 512, PS gateway node(s) 518, and servingnode(s) 516, is provided and dictated by radio technology(ies) utilizedby mobile network platform 510 for telecommunication over a radio accessnetwork 520 with other devices, such as a radiotelephone 575.

In addition to receiving and processing CS-switched traffic andsignaling, PS gateway node(s) 518 can authorize and authenticatePS-based data sessions with served mobile devices. Data sessions cancomprise traffic, or content(s), exchanged with networks external to themobile network platform 510, like wide area network(s) (WANs) 550,enterprise network(s) 570, and service network(s) 580, which can beembodied in local area network(s) (LANs), can also be interfaced withmobile network platform 510 through PS gateway node(s) 518. It is to benoted that WANs 550 and enterprise network(s) 570 can embody, at leastin part, a service network(s) like IP multimedia subsystem (IMS). Basedon radio technology layer(s) available in technology resource(s) orradio access network 520, PS gateway node(s) 518 can generate packetdata protocol contexts when a data session is established; other datastructures that facilitate routing of packetized data also can begenerated. To that end, in an aspect, PS gateway node(s) 518 cancomprise a tunnel interface (e.g., tunnel termination gateway (TTG) in3GPP UMTS network(s) (not shown)) which can facilitate packetizedcommunication with disparate wireless network(s), such as Wi-Finetworks.

In embodiment 500, mobile network platform 510 also comprises servingnode(s) 516 that, based upon available radio technology layer(s) withintechnology resource(s) in the radio access network 520, convey thevarious packetized flows of data streams received through PS gatewaynode(s) 518. It is to be noted that for technology resource(s) that relyprimarily on CS communication, server node(s) can deliver trafficwithout reliance on PS gateway node(s) 518; for example, server node(s)can embody at least in part a mobile switching center. As an example, ina 3GPP UMTS network, serving node(s) 516 can be embodied in serving GPRSsupport node(s) (SGSN).

For radio technologies that exploit packetized communication, server(s)514 in mobile network platform 510 can execute numerous applicationsthat can generate multiple disparate packetized data streams or flows,and manage (e.g., schedule, queue, format . . . ) such flows. Suchapplication(s) can comprise add-on features to standard services (forexample, provisioning, billing, customer support . . . ) provided bymobile network platform 510. Data streams (e.g., content(s) that arepart of a voice call or data session) can be conveyed to PS gatewaynode(s) 518 for authorization/authentication and initiation of a datasession, and to serving node(s) 516 for communication thereafter. Inaddition to application server, server(s) 514 can comprise utilityserver(s), a utility server can comprise a provisioning server, anoperations and maintenance server, a security server that can implementat least in part a certificate authority and firewalls as well as othersecurity mechanisms, and the like. In an aspect, security server(s)secure communication served through mobile network platform 510 toensure network's operation and data integrity in addition toauthorization and authentication procedures that CS gateway node(s) 512and PS gateway node(s) 518 can enact. Moreover, provisioning server(s)can provision services from external network(s) like networks operatedby a disparate service provider; for instance, WAN 550 or GlobalPositioning System (GPS) network(s) (not shown). Provisioning server(s)can also provision coverage through networks associated to mobilenetwork platform 510 (e.g., deployed and operated by the same serviceprovider), such as the distributed antennas networks shown in FIG. 1(s)that enhance wireless service coverage by providing more networkcoverage.

It is to be noted that server(s) 514 can comprise one or more processorsconfigured to confer at least in part the functionality of mobilenetwork platform 510. To that end, the one or more processor can executecode instructions stored in memory 530, for example. It is should beappreciated that server(s) 514 can comprise a content manager, whichoperates in substantially the same manner as described hereinbefore.

In example embodiment 500, memory 530 can store information related tooperation of mobile network platform 510. Other operational informationcan comprise provisioning information of mobile devices served throughmobile network platform 510, subscriber databases; applicationintelligence, pricing schemes, e.g., promotional rates, flat-rateprograms, couponing campaigns; technical specification(s) consistentwith telecommunication protocols for operation of disparate radio, orwireless, technology layers; and so forth. Memory 530 can also storeinformation from at least one of telephony network(s) 540, WAN 550, SS7network 560, or enterprise network(s) 570. In an aspect, memory 530 canbe, for example, accessed as part of a data store component or as aremotely connected memory store.

In order to provide a context for the various aspects of the disclosedsubject matter, FIG. 5, and the following discussion, are intended toprovide a brief, general description of a suitable environment in whichthe various aspects of the disclosed subject matter can be implemented.While the subject matter has been described above in the general contextof computer-executable instructions of a computer program that runs on acomputer and/or computers, those skilled in the art will recognize thatthe disclosed subject matter also can be implemented in combination withother program modules. Generally, program modules comprise routines,programs, components, data structures, etc. that perform particulartasks and/or implement particular abstract data types.

Turning now to FIG. 6, an illustrative embodiment of a communicationdevice 600 is shown. The communication device 600 can serve as anillustrative embodiment of devices such as data terminals 114, mobiledevices 124, vehicle 126, display devices 144 or other client devicesfor communication via either communications network 100. For example,computing device 600 can facilitate in whole or in part receiving afirst indication of a plurality of content items that are available viaa network, responsive to the receiving of the first indication,transmitting a second indication of a selection of a content itemincluded in the plurality of content items, responsive to thetransmitting of the second indication, receiving a first manifest filethat identifies a location on the network where at least a first portionof data associated with the content item may be obtained, responsive tothe receiving of the first manifest file, declaring one of the firstmanifest file or a second manifest file as a selected manifest file, andobtaining the at least a first portion of data from the location on thenetwork in accordance with the selected manifest file. Computing device600 can facilitate in whole or in part receiving a first manifest filefrom a first server that includes first metadata that identifies asecond server where a first portion of data associated with a contentitem is stored, responsive to the receiving of the first manifest file,determining that a trickplay command is received by a processing system,responsive to the determining that the trickplay command is received,generating or modifying a second manifest file to incorporate the firstmetadata, and obtaining the first portion of the data associated withthe content item from the second server in accordance with the secondmanifest file. Computing device 600 can facilitate in whole or in partreceiving a first manifest file from a server, wherein the firstmanifest file comprises first metadata for obtaining first dataassociated with a first portion of a first content item, receiving atrickplay command with respect to a playback of the first portion of thefirst content item, receiving a second manifest file from the serversubsequent to the receiving of the first manifest file, wherein thesecond manifest file comprises second metadata for obtaining second dataassociated with a second portion of the first content item, third dataassociated with a third portion of a second content item, or acombination thereof, and responsive to the receiving of the trickplaycommand and the receiving of the second manifest file, appending thesecond metadata to a third manifest file.

The communication device 600 can comprise a wireline and/or wirelesstransceiver 602 (herein transceiver 602), a user interface (UI) 604, apower supply 614, a location receiver 616, a motion sensor 618, anorientation sensor 620, and a controller 606 for managing operationsthereof. The transceiver 602 can support short-range or long-rangewireless access technologies such as Bluetooth®, ZigBee®, WiFi, DECT, orcellular communication technologies, just to mention a few (Bluetooth®and ZigBee® are trademarks registered by the Bluetooth® Special InterestGroup and the ZigBee® Alliance, respectively). Cellular technologies caninclude, for example, CDMA-1X, UMTS/HSDPA, GSM/GPRS, TDMA/EDGE, EV/DO,WiMAX, SDR, LTE, as well as other next generation wireless communicationtechnologies as they arise. The transceiver 602 can also be adapted tosupport circuit-switched wireline access technologies (such as PSTN),packet-switched wireline access technologies (such as TCP/IP, VoIP,etc.), and combinations thereof.

The UI 604 can include a depressible or touch-sensitive keypad 608 witha navigation mechanism such as a roller ball, a joystick, a mouse, or anavigation disk for manipulating operations of the communication device600. The keypad 608 can be an integral part of a housing assembly of thecommunication device 600 or an independent device operably coupledthereto by a tethered wireline interface (such as a USB cable) or awireless interface supporting for example Bluetooth®. The keypad 608 canrepresent a numeric keypad commonly used by phones, and/or a QWERTYkeypad with alphanumeric keys. The UI 604 can further include a display610 such as monochrome or color LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), OLED(Organic Light Emitting Diode) or other suitable display technology forconveying images to an end user of the communication device 600. In anembodiment where the display 610 is touch-sensitive, a portion or all ofthe keypad 608 can be presented by way of the display 610 withnavigation features.

The display 610 can use touch screen technology to also serve as a userinterface for detecting user input. As a touch screen display, thecommunication device 600 can be adapted to present a user interfacehaving graphical user interface (GUI) elements that can be selected by auser with a touch of a finger. The display 610 can be equipped withcapacitive, resistive or other forms of sensing technology to detect howmuch surface area of a user's finger has been placed on a portion of thetouch screen display. This sensing information can be used to controlthe manipulation of the GUI elements or other functions of the userinterface. The display 610 can be an integral part of the housingassembly of the communication device 600 or an independent devicecommunicatively coupled thereto by a tethered wireline interface (suchas a cable) or a wireless interface.

The UI 604 can also include an audio system 612 that utilizes audiotechnology for conveying low volume audio (such as audio heard inproximity of a human ear) and high volume audio (such as speakerphonefor hands free operation). The audio system 612 can further include amicrophone for receiving audible signals of an end user. The audiosystem 612 can also be used for voice recognition applications. The UI604 can further include an image sensor 613 such as a charged coupleddevice (CCD) camera for capturing still or moving images.

The power supply 614 can utilize common power management technologiessuch as replaceable and rechargeable batteries, supply regulationtechnologies, and/or charging system technologies for supplying energyto the components of the communication device 600 to facilitatelong-range or short-range portable communications. Alternatively, or incombination, the charging system can utilize external power sources suchas DC power supplied over a physical interface such as a USB port orother suitable tethering technologies.

The location receiver 616 can utilize location technology such as aglobal positioning system (GPS) receiver capable of assisted GPS foridentifying a location of the communication device 600 based on signalsgenerated by a constellation of GPS satellites, which can be used forfacilitating location services such as navigation. The motion sensor 618can utilize motion sensing technology such as an accelerometer, agyroscope, or other suitable motion sensing technology to detect motionof the communication device 600 in three-dimensional space. Theorientation sensor 620 can utilize orientation sensing technology suchas a magnetometer to detect the orientation of the communication device600 (north, south, west, and east, as well as combined orientations indegrees, minutes, or other suitable orientation metrics).

The communication device 600 can use the transceiver 602 to alsodetermine a proximity to a cellular, WiFi, Bluetooth®, or other wirelessaccess points by sensing techniques such as utilizing a received signalstrength indicator (RSSI) and/or signal time of arrival (TOA) or time offlight (TOF) measurements. The controller 606 can utilize computingtechnologies such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP),programmable gate arrays, application specific integrated circuits,and/or a video processor with associated storage memory such as Flash,ROM, RAM, SRAM, DRAM or other storage technologies for executingcomputer instructions, controlling, and processing data supplied by theaforementioned components of the communication device 600.

Other components not shown in FIG. 6 can be used in one or moreembodiments of the subject disclosure. For instance, the communicationdevice 600 can include a slot for adding or removing an identity modulesuch as a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card or Universal IntegratedCircuit Card (UICC). SIM or UICC cards can be used for identifyingsubscriber services, executing programs, storing subscriber data, and soon.

The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” and so forth, as used in theclaims, unless otherwise clear by context, is for clarity only anddoesn't otherwise indicate or imply any order in time. For instance, “afirst determination,” “a second determination,” and “a thirddetermination,” does not indicate or imply that the first determinationis to be made before the second determination, or vice versa, etc.

In the subject specification, terms such as “store,” “storage,” “datastore,” data storage,” “database,” and substantially any otherinformation storage component relevant to operation and functionality ofa component, refer to “memory components,” or entities embodied in a“memory” or components comprising the memory. It will be appreciatedthat the memory components described herein can be either volatilememory or nonvolatile memory, or can comprise both volatile andnonvolatile memory, by way of illustration, and not limitation, volatilememory, non-volatile memory, disk storage, and memory storage. Further,nonvolatile memory can be included in read only memory (ROM),programmable ROM (PROM), electrically programmable ROM (EPROM),electrically erasable ROM (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory cancomprise random access memory (RAM), which acts as external cachememory. By way of illustration and not limitation, RAM is available inmany forms such as synchronous RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM),synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhancedSDRAM (ESDRAM), Synchlink DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct Rambus RAM (DRRAM).Additionally, the disclosed memory components of systems or methodsherein are intended to comprise, without being limited to comprising,these and any other suitable types of memory.

Moreover, it will be noted that the disclosed subject matter can bepracticed with other computer system configurations, comprisingsingle-processor or multiprocessor computer systems, mini-computingdevices, mainframe computers, as well as personal computers, hand-heldcomputing devices (e.g., PDA, phone, smartphone, watch, tabletcomputers, netbook computers, etc.), microprocessor-based orprogrammable consumer or industrial electronics, and the like. Theillustrated aspects can also be practiced in distributed computingenvironments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices thatare linked through a communications network; however, some if not allaspects of the subject disclosure can be practiced on stand-alonecomputers. In a distributed computing environment, program modules canbe located in both local and remote memory storage devices.

In one or more embodiments, information regarding use of services can begenerated including services being accessed, media consumption history,user preferences, and so forth. This information can be obtained byvarious methods including user input, detecting types of communications(e.g., video content vs. audio content), analysis of content streams,sampling, and so forth. The generating, obtaining and/or monitoring ofthis information can be responsive to an authorization provided by theuser. In one or more embodiments, an analysis of data can be subject toauthorization from user(s) associated with the data, such as an opt-in,an opt-out, acknowledgement requirements, notifications, selectiveauthorization based on types of data, and so forth.

Some of the embodiments described herein can also employ artificialintelligence (AI) to facilitate automating one or more featuresdescribed herein. The embodiments (e.g., in connection withautomatically identifying acquired cell sites that provide a maximumvalue/benefit after addition to an existing communication network) canemploy various AI-based schemes for carrying out various embodimentsthereof. Moreover, the classifier can be employed to determine a rankingor priority of each cell site of the acquired network. A classifier is afunction that maps an input attribute vector, x=(x1, x2, x3, x4, . . . ,xn), to a confidence that the input belongs to a class, that is,f(x)=confidence (class). Such classification can employ a probabilisticand/or statistical-based analysis (e.g., factoring into the analysisutilities and costs) to determine or infer an action that a user desiresto be automatically performed. A support vector machine (SVM) is anexample of a classifier that can be employed. The SVM operates byfinding a hypersurface in the space of possible inputs, which thehypersurface attempts to split the triggering criteria from thenon-triggering events. Intuitively, this makes the classificationcorrect for testing data that is near, but not identical to trainingdata. Other directed and undirected model classification approachescomprise, e.g., naïve Bayes, Bayesian networks, decision trees, neuralnetworks, fuzzy logic models, and probabilistic classification modelsproviding different patterns of independence can be employed.Classification as used herein also is inclusive of statisticalregression that is utilized to develop models of priority.

As will be readily appreciated, one or more of the embodiments canemploy classifiers that are explicitly trained (e.g., via a generictraining data) as well as implicitly trained (e.g., via observing UEbehavior, operator preferences, historical information, receivingextrinsic information). For example, SVMs can be configured via alearning or training phase within a classifier constructor and featureselection module. Thus, the classifier(s) can be used to automaticallylearn and perform a number of functions, including but not limited todetermining according to predetermined criteria which of the acquiredcell sites will benefit a maximum number of subscribers and/or which ofthe acquired cell sites will add minimum value to the existingcommunication network coverage, etc.

As used in some contexts in this application, in some embodiments, theterms “component,” “system” and the like are intended to refer to, orcomprise, a computer-related entity or an entity related to anoperational apparatus with one or more specific functionalities, whereinthe entity can be either hardware, a combination of hardware andsoftware, software, or software in execution. As an example, a componentmay be, but is not limited to being, a process running on a processor, aprocessor, an object, an executable, a thread of execution,computer-executable instructions, a program, and/or a computer. By wayof illustration and not limitation, both an application running on aserver and the server can be a component. One or more components mayreside within a process and/or thread of execution and a component maybe localized on one computer and/or distributed between two or morecomputers. In addition, these components can execute from variouscomputer readable media having various data structures stored thereon.The components may communicate via local and/or remote processes such asin accordance with a signal having one or more data packets (e.g., datafrom one component interacting with another component in a local system,distributed system, and/or across a network such as the Internet withother systems via the signal). As another example, a component can be anapparatus with specific functionality provided by mechanical partsoperated by electric or electronic circuitry, which is operated by asoftware or firmware application executed by a processor, wherein theprocessor can be internal or external to the apparatus and executes atleast a part of the software or firmware application. As yet anotherexample, a component can be an apparatus that provides specificfunctionality through electronic components without mechanical parts,the electronic components can comprise a processor therein to executesoftware or firmware that confers at least in part the functionality ofthe electronic components. While various components have beenillustrated as separate components, it will be appreciated that multiplecomponents can be implemented as a single component, or a singlecomponent can be implemented as multiple components, without departingfrom example embodiments.

Further, the various embodiments can be implemented as a method,apparatus or article of manufacture using standard programming and/orengineering techniques to produce software, firmware, hardware or anycombination thereof to control a computer to implement the disclosedsubject matter. The term “article of manufacture” as used herein isintended to encompass a computer program accessible from anycomputer-readable device or computer-readable storage/communicationsmedia. For example, computer readable storage media can include, but arenot limited to, magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disk, floppy disk,magnetic strips), optical disks (e.g., compact disk (CD), digitalversatile disk (DVD)), smart cards, and flash memory devices (e.g.,card, stick, key drive). Of course, those skilled in the art willrecognize many modifications can be made to this configuration withoutdeparting from the scope or spirit of the various embodiments.

In addition, the words “example” and “exemplary” are used herein to meanserving as an instance or illustration. Any embodiment or designdescribed herein as “example” or “exemplary” is not necessarily to beconstrued as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments ordesigns. Rather, use of the word example or exemplary is intended topresent concepts in a concrete fashion. As used in this application, theterm “or” is intended to mean an inclusive “or” rather than an exclusive“or”. That is, unless specified otherwise or clear from context, “Xemploys A or B” is intended to mean any of the natural inclusivepermutations. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both Aand B, then “X employs A or B” is satisfied under any of the foregoinginstances. In addition, the articles “a” and “an” as used in thisapplication and the appended claims should generally be construed tomean “one or more” unless specified otherwise or clear from context tobe directed to a singular form.

Moreover, terms such as “user equipment,” “mobile station,” “mobile,”subscriber station,” “access terminal,” “terminal,” “handset,” “mobiledevice” (and/or terms representing similar terminology) can refer to awireless device utilized by a subscriber or user of a wirelesscommunication service to receive or convey data, control, voice, video,sound, gaming or substantially any data-stream or signaling-stream. Theforegoing terms are utilized interchangeably herein and with referenceto the related drawings.

Furthermore, the terms “user,” “subscriber,” “customer,” “consumer” andthe like are employed interchangeably throughout, unless contextwarrants particular distinctions among the terms. It should beappreciated that such terms can refer to human entities or automatedcomponents supported through artificial intelligence (e.g., a capacityto make inference based, at least, on complex mathematical formalisms),which can provide simulated vision, sound recognition and so forth.

As employed herein, the term “processor” can refer to substantially anycomputing processing unit or device comprising, but not limited tocomprising, single-core processors; single-processors with softwaremultithread execution capability; multi-core processors; multi-coreprocessors with software multithread execution capability; multi-coreprocessors with hardware multithread technology; parallel platforms; andparallel platforms with distributed shared memory. Additionally, aprocessor can refer to an integrated circuit, an application specificintegrated circuit (ASIC), a digital signal processor (DSP), a fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA), a programmable logic controller (PLC), acomplex programmable logic device (CPLD), a discrete gate or transistorlogic, discrete hardware components or any combination thereof designedto perform the functions described herein. Processors can exploitnano-scale architectures such as, but not limited to, molecular andquantum-dot based transistors, switches and gates, in order to optimizespace usage or enhance performance of user equipment. A processor canalso be implemented as a combination of computing processing units.

As used herein, terms such as “data storage,” data storage,” “database,”and substantially any other information storage component relevant tooperation and functionality of a component, refer to “memorycomponents,” or entities embodied in a “memory” or components comprisingthe memory. It will be appreciated that the memory components orcomputer-readable storage media, described herein can be either volatilememory or nonvolatile memory or can include both volatile andnonvolatile memory.

What has been described above includes mere examples of variousembodiments. It is, of course, not possible to describe everyconceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes ofdescribing these examples, but one of ordinary skill in the art canrecognize that many further combinations and permutations of the presentembodiments are possible. Accordingly, the embodiments disclosed and/orclaimed herein are intended to embrace all such alterations,modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and scope ofthe appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the term “includes”is used in either the detailed description or the claims, such term isintended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as“comprising” is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in aclaim.

In addition, a flow diagram may include a “start” and/or “continue”indication. The “start” and “continue” indications reflect that thesteps presented can optionally be incorporated in or otherwise used inconjunction with other routines. In this context, “start” indicates thebeginning of the first step presented and may be preceded by otheractivities not specifically shown. Further, the “continue” indicationreflects that the steps presented may be performed multiple times and/ormay be succeeded by other activities not specifically shown. Further,while a flow diagram indicates a particular ordering of steps, otherorderings are likewise possible provided that the principles ofcausality are maintained.

As may also be used herein, the term(s) “operably coupled to”, “coupledto”, and/or “coupling” includes direct coupling between items and/orindirect coupling between items via one or more intervening items. Suchitems and intervening items include, but are not limited to, junctions,communication paths, components, circuit elements, circuits, functionalblocks, and/or devices. As an example of indirect coupling, a signalconveyed from a first item to a second item may be modified by one ormore intervening items by modifying the form, nature or format ofinformation in a signal, while one or more elements of the informationin the signal are nevertheless conveyed in a manner than can berecognized by the second item. In a further example of indirectcoupling, an action in a first item can cause a reaction on the seconditem, as a result of actions and/or reactions in one or more interveningitems.

Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and describedherein, it should be appreciated that any arrangement which achieves thesame or similar purpose may be substituted for the embodiments describedor shown by the subject disclosure. The subject disclosure is intendedto cover any and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments.Combinations of the above embodiments, and other embodiments notspecifically described herein, can be used in the subject disclosure.For instance, one or more features from one or more embodiments can becombined with one or more features of one or more other embodiments. Inone or more embodiments, features that are positively recited can alsobe negatively recited and excluded from the embodiment with or withoutreplacement by another structural and/or functional feature. The stepsor functions described with respect to the embodiments of the subjectdisclosure can be performed in any order. The steps or functionsdescribed with respect to the embodiments of the subject disclosure canbe performed alone or in combination with other steps or functions ofthe subject disclosure, as well as from other embodiments or from othersteps that have not been described in the subject disclosure. Further,more than or less than all of the features described with respect to anembodiment can also be utilized.

What is claimed is:
 1. A device, comprising: a processing systemincluding a processor; and a memory that stores executable instructionsthat, when executed by the processing system, facilitate performance ofoperations, the operations comprising: receiving a first indication of aplurality of content items that are available via a network; responsiveto the receiving of the first indication, transmitting a secondindication of a selection of a content item included in the plurality ofcontent items; responsive to the transmitting of the second indication,receiving a first manifest file that includes first metadata, whereinthe first metadata identifies a location on the network where at least afirst portion of data associated with the content item may be obtained,wherein an amount of data associated with the at least a first portionof data is based on a network load, a quality of service parameter, andtypes of communication sessions that the device is engaged in, the typesof communication sessions including a voice communication session;responsive to the receiving of the first manifest file, declaring one ofthe first manifest file or a second manifest file as a selected manifestfile; and obtaining the at least a first portion of data from thelocation on the network in accordance with the selected manifest file.2. The device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:responsive to the receiving of the first manifest file, determining thata trickplay command is obtained, wherein the declaring of the one of thefirst manifest file or the second manifest file as the selected manifestfile corresponds to declaring the second manifest file as the selectedmanifest file responsive to the determining that the trickplay commandis obtained.
 3. The device of claim 2, wherein the operations furthercomprise: responsive to the determining that the trickplay command isobtained, generating the second manifest file.
 4. The device of claim 3,wherein the generating of the second manifest file comprisesincorporating metadata included in the first manifest file in the secondmanifest file.
 5. The device of claim 2, wherein the operations furthercomprise: responsive to the determining that the trickplay command isobtained, modifying the second manifest file.
 6. The device of claim 5,wherein the modifying of the second manifest file comprisesincorporating the first metadata included in the first manifest file inthe second manifest file.
 7. The device of claim 6, wherein theincorporating of the first metadata in the second manifest filecomprises preserving second metadata in the second manifest file.
 8. Thedevice of claim 6, wherein the incorporating of the first metadata inthe second manifest file comprises overwriting second metadata in thesecond manifest file with the first metadata.
 9. The device of claim 8,wherein the second manifest file includes third metadata, and whereinthe operations further comprise: determining that the second metadata isolder than the third metadata; and responsive to the determining thatthe second metadata is older than the third metadata, selecting thesecond metadata to be overwritten with the first metadata whilepreserving the third metadata in the second manifest file.
 10. Thedevice of claim 8, wherein the second manifest file includes thirdmetadata, and wherein the operations further comprise: determining thatfourth metadata indicates that the third metadata has a higher prioritythan the second metadata; and responsive to the determining that thefourth metadata indicates that the third metadata has a higher prioritythan the second metadata, selecting the second metadata to beoverwritten with the first metadata while preserving the third metadatain the second manifest file.
 11. The device of claim 1, wherein theobtaining of the at least a first portion of data from the location onthe network is further in accordance with a streaming, over-the-top(OTT) distribution model.
 12. The device of claim 1, wherein thereceiving of the first indication of the plurality of content items thatare available via the network comprises presenting the first indicationin accordance with an audio rendering, an electronic programming guide(EPG), an interactive programming guide (IPG), a menu, or anycombination thereof.
 13. A non-transitory machine-readable medium,comprising executable instructions that, when executed by a processingsystem including a processor, facilitate performance of operations, theoperations comprising: receiving a first manifest file from a firstserver that includes first metadata that identifies a second serverwhere a first portion of data associated with a content item is stored,wherein an amount of data associated with the first portion of data isbased on a network load, a quality of service parameter, and types ofcommunication sessions that the processing system is engaged in, thetypes of communication sessions including a voice communication session;responsive to the receiving of the first manifest file, determining thata trickplay command is received by the processing system; responsive tothe determining that the trickplay command is received, generating ormodifying a second manifest file to incorporate the first metadata; andobtaining the first portion of the data associated with the content itemfrom the second server in accordance with the second manifest file. 14.The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 13, wherein theoperations further comprise: receiving the trickplay command based on auser input.
 15. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 13,wherein the trickplay command comprises a rewind command, a pausecommand, a resume command, a fast-forward command, or any combinationthereof, and wherein the content item comprises a video.
 16. Thenon-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 13, wherein theoperations further comprise: subsequent to the receiving of the firstmanifest file from the first server, receiving a third manifest filefrom the first server that includes second metadata, wherein the secondmetadata identifies a third server where a second portion of the dataassociated with the content item is stored; responsive to the receivingof the third manifest file, modifying the second manifest file toincorporate the second metadata; and obtaining the second portion of thedata associated with the content item from the third server inaccordance with the second manifest file.
 17. The non-transitorymachine-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the first server isdifferent from the second server, and wherein the first server isdifferent from the third server.
 18. The non-transitory machine-readablemedium of claim 17, wherein the second server is different from thethird server.
 19. A method, comprising: receiving, by a processingsystem including a processor, a first manifest file from a server,wherein the first manifest file comprises first metadata for obtainingfirst data associated with a first portion of a first content item,wherein an amount of data associated with the first data is based on anetwork load, a quality of service parameter, and types of communicationsessions that the processing system is engaged in, the types ofcommunication sessions including a voice communication session;receiving, by the processing system, a trickplay command with respect toa playback of the first portion of the first content item; receiving, bythe processing system, a second manifest file from the server subsequentto the receiving of the first manifest file, wherein the second manifestfile comprises second metadata for obtaining second data associated witha second portion of the first content item, third data associated with athird portion of a second content item, or a combination thereof; andresponsive to the receiving of the trickplay command and the receivingof the second manifest file, appending, by the processing system, thesecond metadata to a third manifest file stored by the processingsystem.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein the receiving of thetrickplay command comprises receiving a pause command and receiving aresume command, wherein the receiving of the resume command issubsequent to the receiving of the pause command, wherein the receivingof the resume command is subsequent to the receiving of the secondmanifest file, and wherein the method further comprises: accessing, bythe processing system, the second metadata from the third manifest filesubsequent to the appending and subsequent to the receiving of theresume command; and obtaining, by the processing system, the second dataassociated with the second portion of the first content item, the thirddata associated with the third portion of the second content item, orthe combination thereof, responsive to the accessing of the secondmetadata from the third manifest file.